Seat mounting for theater chairs or the like



SEAT MOUNTING FOR THEATER CHAIRS OR THE LIKE Filed March 17, 1.955

Dec. 3, 1957 E. B. MORGAN ETAL 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR m/z'rz 6. 940 an dwafl 7T Zfaifzc H4 7rank 1 Wabermmz Dec. 3, 1957 E. B. MORGAN ETAL ,3

SEAT MOUNTING FOR THEATER CHAIRS OR THE LIKE Filed March 17, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 f INVENTOR rz/irzy 63 21mm:

fail/0rd T Mamie 7rank 7. f/adem /mrz- 17W W ATTORNEY SEAT MOUNTING FOR THEATER CHAIRS OR THE LIKE Erv ing B. Morgan, Edward T. Manne, and Frank F.

, Haberman, Grand Rapids, Mich., assignors to American Seating Company, Grand Rapids, Mich., a corporation of New Jersey Application March 17, 1955, Serial No. 494,994

1 Claim. (Cl. 155-85) The present invention relates to seat mountings and more particularly to mountings for the seats of chairs adapted for installation in rows in theaters, auditoriums, and the like.

The primary object of the invention is to provide improved seat mountings of the type disclosed in Patents Nos. 2,582,599 and 2,582,600, both issued on January 15, 1952, to Walter E. Nordmark and by him assigned to our assignee.

An illustrative embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Figure 1 is a front elevational view of a chair of the theater type installed between supporting standards each of which also supports one side of an adjacent chair in a row thereof, the adjacent chairs being shown fragmentarily;

Figure 2 is a sectional view of the chair taken on line 2-2 of Figure 1, the seat being shown in its normal, neutral position in full lines, in its lowered position for occupancy in dotted lines, and in its fully raised position in broken lines;

Figure 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary, vertical sectional view through the seat foundation, taken on line 3-3 of Figure 1, and illustrating the seat in its normal or neutral position intermediate its extreme lowered and raised positions;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary perspective view of the chair seat and of a supporting bracket secured thereto, there being also shown a fragment of the adjacent seat bracket of an adjoining chair seat; and

Figure 5 is a perspective view of one of the seat brackets, per se.

Referring now in detail to these drawings, a row of seating best illustrated in Figure 1 is mounted upon spaced, upright, chair-supporting standards which are preinstalled in a threatre or the like and upon which are subsequently mounted chair backs 11 and chair seats 12. The standards 10 are of the type known as middle standards, each serving as a common support for the adjacent sides of adjoining chairs in a row and each being provided with a conventional arm rest 13. In the present construction, the chair backs 11 are shown mounted on plates 14 which are secured in any conventional manner, as by bolts or rivets 15, to a pair of the standards 105.,

Each chair seat 12 comprises a seat cushion 16 removably mounted in conventional manner upon a sheet metal seat foundation or seat pan 17, and the present invention concerns the seat mounting connections between the seat pan 17 and the supporting standards 10, whereby the following results are accomplished:

(1) A support is provided for the weight of the seat and the occupant;

(2) A pivot is provided about which the seat turns to raised and lowered positions;

(3) The seat is normally maintained in a neutral posi' tion between its raised and lowered positions;

United States Patent 0 2,815,065 Patented Dec. 3, 1957 ice (4) Stops are provided for the seat in its extreme raised and lowered positions;

(5) Provision is made for ready installation of the seats on pre-installed standards in either straight or curved rows; and i (6) Lateral or horizontal adjustment is made to compensate for slight errors in the spacings between standards.

The standards 10 are usually made of cast metal, and each standard is provided with a horizontal web portion 20 having a vertical opening 21 therein (see Figure 3). Seat brackets 22 comprise vertical portions 23 and horizontal portions 24 having horizontally elongated outwardly opening vertical slots 25 therethrough which extend inwardly from the outer edges of the brackets (see Figures 4 and 5). The seat brackets 22 for the adjacent sides of adjoining chairs are secured to their common supporting standard 10 by means of a bolt 26 inserted upwardly as shown through the opening 21 in the standards web portion 20 and through the openings 25 in the pair of seat brackets 22, a nut 27 being provided on the upper end of bolt 26 for securing the brackets to the standard, and the brackets being secured in required angularly adjusted position about the axis of the bolt 26. It will be seen that the horizontal portions of the left hand seat brackets are at a slightly higher level than, and overlap, the horizontal portions of the right hand seat brackets, said brackets being so formed that the remainders: of the right hand and left hand brackets are at the same level.

Each seat bracket 22 is provided with an annular trunnion 28 and a stud 29 both of which are integrally cast with the bracket and both of which extend inwardly from the vertical portion 23 of the bracket (see Figures 3 and 5). The seat pan 17 is turnably journalled on the mutually inwardly extending trunnions 28 of the brackets 22 on a pair of adjacent standards 10. The side walls 30 of the seat pan 17 are provided with arcuate openings or slots 31 concentric with the trunnions 28, through which slots pass the mutually inwardly extending studs 29. Reinforcing plates 32 (see Figure 3) are secured as by welding 33 to the inner surfaces of the seat pans side walls 30 and are provided with bearing openings 34 through which extend the trunnions 28, and with other openings 35 which coincide with the arcuate slots 31 in the seat pans side walls 30. These reinforcing plates 32 have inwardly pressed pockets 36 at the upper ends of the slots 31, into which pockets are inserted rubber cushion bumpers 37. It will be seen that when the seat is in its lowered position for occupancy the rubber cushion bumpers 37 rest on the studs 29, said studs thus serving as stops for the lowering movement of the chair seat and as supports for the seat when occupied. The studs 29 also engage the opposite ends of the slots 31 to limit the upward swinging movement of the seat from its neutral position shown in Figure 2 to its extreme raised position shown in broken lines in Figure 2.

A spring 38 serves to maintain the seat, when unoccupied, in its normal or neutral position shown in full lines in Figures 2 and 3, said spring being yielding to permit movement of the seat to its lowered position for occupancy shown in dotted lines in Figure 2 or to its extreme raised position shown in broken lines in Figure 2. The action of the spring 38 is described in greater detail in the patents above identified.

The present invention resides in the provision of arcuately formed guard wings 39, 41} cast integrally with each bracket 22, these brackets being preferably made of cast iron. The upper guard wing 39 extends forwardly and upwardly from the vertical portion 23 of bracket 22 and overlies the upper portion of the seat pans arcuate slot 31 when the seat is in a fully raised position. The

lower guard wing 40 extends rearwardly and downwardly from the vertical portion 23 of bracket 22 and overlies the lower portion of the seat pans arcuate slot 31 when the seat is in its fully lowered position. Both guard wings 39 and 40 lie closely adjacent the outer wall of the seat pan 17, and it will be seen that the seat pans arcuate slot 31 is thus entirely shielded in any swung position of the seat so as to prevent the entry of fingers into the slot 31 and thus positively eliminate the hazard of injury to the fingers during operation of the seat. The guard wings 3% 40' also prevent the accumulation of dust within the seat pan and the possibility of entry of large insects or vermin.

It will thus be seen that an improved seat mounting has been provided at almost no increase in cost of the mountings inasmuch as the seat brackets 22, trunnions 28, studs 29 and guard wings 39, 4%) are all integrally cast as a unitary element, and while but one specific embodiment of the invention has been herein shown and described it will be understood that details thereof may be altered or omitted without departing from the spirit of the invention as the same is defined by the following claim.

We claim:

In a chair structure: a pair of standards; a seat bracket mounted on each standard; trunnions on said brackets extending mutually inwardly; a seat having its opposite side walls journalled on said trunnions and said side walls having arcuate slots therethrough forwardly of and concentric with the adjacent trunnions respectively; studs on said brackets extending inwardly through said slots and adapted to engage the ends of the slots for limiting swinging movements of the seat on the trunnions to positions wherein the seat is lowered for occupancy or raised for non-occupancy; upper guard wings on said brackets extending forwardly and upwardly therefrom and overlying the upper portions of said arcuate slots when the seat is in a fully raised position; lower guard wings on said brackets extending rearwardly and downwardly therefrom and overlying the lower portions of said arcuate slots when the seat is in its fully lowered position, said upper and lower guard Wings lying closely adjacent the side walls of the seat whereby the arcuate slots therein are entirely shielded in any swung position of the seat, and each bracket and its adjacent trunnion, stud and upper and lower guard wing comprising a unitary metal casting.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

